23 July, 2015

NAIROBI, Kenya, July 23, 2015/ -- Today, ahead of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit(#GES2015Kenya) in Nairobi, GE (NYSE: GE) announced
a series of new commitments aimed at addressing some of the most
critical health challenges in East Africa through a sustained focus on
skills development and capacity building. Among the investments, GE
announced:

As outlined in the GE Africa Future of Work White Paper, launched today, entitled, Building Strong Workforces to Power Africa’s Growth,
Sub-Saharan Africa will need to create an average of 15-20 million new
jobs per year over the next three decades to meet the current growth,
presenting a considerable challenge to the labor market given the low
rates of formal employment.(1)

Sub-Saharan
Africa will need to create an average of 15-20 million new jobs per
year over the next three decades to meet the current growth - GE Africa
Future of Work White Paper

Moreover,
the global health sector, especially in developing markets, is facing
critical workforce shortages,(2) with Africa ranking the lowest in the
availability of health personnel.(3) With 12% of the world’s population
and 25% of the world’s burden of diseases, Sub-Saharan Africa has only
3% of the world’s health workforce.(4) According to the White Paper, the
African urbanization story underscores the need for Governments and
their partners to invest aggressively in enhancing skills.(5)

Farid
Fezoua, President & CEO of GE Healthcare Africa said, “Investing in
the training and education of healthcare professionals to strengthen
capability building is one of the greatest enablers for sustainable
healthcare development. GE Healthcare’s education strategy integrates
technology and localization in the design and deployment of tailored
education solutions including the establishment of new healthcare
training centers, locally configured curricula and a range of education
partnerships with leading regional academic institutions and global
partners. As a major force for change, we aim to increase access to
localized education, training and skills development programs for more
healthcare workers across Africa.”

1. GE Healthcare Skills and Training Institute, Kenya

Selected
in February 2015 as a key technology and solutions partner by the
Kenyan Ministry of Health (MoH) as part of its ~USD 420 million
healthcare transformation plan, GE is committed to supporting
knowledge-sharing and capacity building in Kenya and across East Africa.
As a cornerstone of the mega-modernization program, GE will launch the
new GE Healthcare Skills and Training Institute in Kenya, representing a
long-term investment of at least $13 million over the next 10 years.

With
specialised GE Healthcare training facilities across the globe, the
centre is set to become GE’s first dedicated skills development facility
in Africa when inaugurated in Nairobi later in Q4 2015 that will serve
Kenya and the wider East Africa.

The
GE Healthcare Skills and Training Institute will initially offer
biomedical and clinical applications training courses and over the
longer-term will be expanded to offer leadership, technical and clinical
education courses, working with the MoH, private healthcare providers
and other educational partners, with the goal to train over 1,000
healthcare professionals over the next 3 years.

In
East Africa, where there is a significant shortage of qualified
healthcare professionals, the localization of vocational and leadership
training courses aims to support the development of a pipeline of future
biomedical engineers, radiologists and technicians, helping to reduce
the skills gap, improve job prospects and build a solid national
healthcare system and private healthcare sector.

The
Kenya training center is part of GE Healthcare’s global commitment to
invest over $1 billion in the development and delivery of localized
offerings for the healthcare sector, including a new class of
technology-enabled training solutions by 2020. Moreover, as part of this
commitment, GE Healthcare aims to deliver enhanced training for over
two million health professionals globally that is expected to help
healthcare systems drive better patient outcomes and benefit more than
350 million patients worldwide by 2020.

2. Ethiopia Biomedical Equipment Training (BMET) Center of Excellence

GE
Foundation’s first Biomedical Equipment Training (BMET) program in
Ethiopia responds to the shortage of skilled healthcare workers and
functional medical equipment. The BMET Center of Excellence (COE) builds
on the success of prior BMET programming in Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda,
Honduras and Cambodia and expands the commitment by creating a COE
within a hospital setting to translate learning to actual work
processes.

The
COE “workshop” will set a benchmark for hands-on training and process
replication, further strengthening healthcare systems. Training
participants will benefit from a well-rounded curriculum including
professional management and customer service skills, in-hospital
clinical application, asset management and financial reporting skills
and professional development.

This
three-year program grant will help fund the development of the training
to educate biomedical technicians in Ethiopia to respond to the
shortage of functional medical equipment, by focusing on repairing – not
replacing – equipment using available resources. Programs such as these
can help local hospitals increase availability of medical equipment –
such as incubators for infants – by up to 43% in some cases.

3. Safe Surgery Program in Ethiopia

With
a significant training component, the GE Foundation commitment to
improving safe surgery in Ethiopia will be delivered through a new
partnership with Lifebox, a non-governmental organization focused on
implementation of the WHO Safe Surgical Checklist. This program aims to
standardize safe surgery by increasing access to and quality of surgery,
reducing surgical complications, and preventing patient deaths in the
region.

In
collaboration with the Ministry of Health, the program will help
develop a surgical operating standards program to serve as a pilot for a
country-wide intervention, with local champions from surgical,
anesthesia, and nursing backgrounds serving as program leaders. The
program will also provide guidance, and help coordinate the
implementation of safe surgical standards with a focus on localization.
The ultimate goal of the partnership is to expand country-wide through
collaboration with local partners including ministries, NGOs,
professional societies, teaching institutions, and peer-to-peer
networks.

“Safe
Surgery has long been a neglected area of global health, and universal
access to an essential set of surgical procedures would prevent 1.5
million deaths around the world every year,” said Dr. David Barash,
Executive Director, Global Health Portfolio, and Chief Medical Officer,
GE Foundation. “It’s tragic that millions of people are dying from
common, easily treated conditions like appendicitis, fractures or
obstructed labor because they do not have access to proper surgical
care. We are especially pleased to launch this partnership focused on
access to safe surgery with Lifebox, given their success implementing
the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist, leading to a nearly 60% reduction in
the total number of perioperative complications in low-resource
settings.”

This
program grant will be delivered over 18 months, focusing on a Center of
Excellence for health worker training, leadership development,
improvement in Safe Surgery Standards compliance, and create guidelines
for measuring surgical site infections, postoperative mortality, and
other complications.

Earlier
this year, the GE Foundation participated in the launch of a major new
Commission on safe surgery published in The Lancet. The Commission notes
that five billion people worldwide do not have access to safe and
affordable surgery and anesthesia when they need it, and access is worst
in low- and lower-middle income countries, where as many as nine out of
ten people cannot access basic surgical care. The GE Foundation
Biomedical Equipment Technician (BMET) training program was highlighted
in the Commission as a “best in class” model for sustainable training.

09 June, 2015

The first product in the world that allows Kenyans living abroad to make M-Pesa PayBill payments

SimbaPay – a leading digital money transfer provider – today announced the
launch of the first product in the world that allows Kenyans living
abroad to make M-Pesa PayBill payments. This is a new addition to the
existing SimbaPay platform.

M-Pesa
PayBill is an M-Pesa service that has previously only been available to
Safaricom M-Pesa subscribers in Kenya and allows the subscribers to pay
hunderds of vendors via M-Pesa. By SimbaPay granting PayBill access to
its customers, Kenyans abroad can now also pay hundreds of vendors and
utility companies in Kenya directly via M-Pesa PayBill.

Nyasinga
Onyancha, CEO for SimbaPay noted that “Our customers want to pay
vendors in Kenya faster and without having to go through friends and
family”. “This new product allows them to do just that, especially for
time sensitive payments such as those to hospitals, stock brokers and
the like”.

SimbaPay
customers will not require a Safaricom phone number or M-Pesa
registration to pay vendors via PayBill as is currently the case for
M-Pesa subscribers living in Kenya. SimbaPay charges zero fees for its
instant money transfers to M-Pesa PayBill numbers.

Kenyans
living in the UK with a bank account, debit card or credit card will be
able to use the SimbaPay app to make M-Pesa PayBill payments from any
mobile phone, tablet or computer. Transfers made using SimbaPay to
M-Pesa PayBill numbers are credited instantly. The service has already
been rolled out to Kenyans living in the UK with other EU countries
slated in the near future.

For
ease of use, the majority of M-Pesa PayBill numbers and vendors have
also been pre-loaded on to the SimbaPay platform which eliminates the
need for customers having to remember a vendor’s PayBill number. At the
time of making an M-Pesa Paybill transfer using SimbaPay, customers will
be required to select the vendor to be paid and then enter their
account number with the vendor. For example if paying a hospital bill,
the patient number will be required.

SimbaPay
launched free, instant transfers to Nigeria in May 2015 and continues
to disrupt the cross-border remittance industry with its focus on speed
and convenience.

The SimbaPay app can be downloaded for free from the Apple or Android app stores.

19 May, 2015

The following info-graphics from a report published by Jovago Kenya's premier online booking website is quite telling. Question-Do you agree with it?

Kenyan
Travel Habits: Info graphics

Travel and tourism is the major source of foreign
exchange in Kenya, as well as a major contributor to the national GDP. Although
hampered by numerous challenges, tourism still remains at the forefront of the
economy. With such an important role on the national plate, it’s only prudent
for both government and private stakeholders to keep abreast with global
developments in the industry. One of the major fronts include tapping into e-tourism,
moving away from the traditional tourism trends to the steadily rising world of
savvy travelers. Local companies like Jovago.com are actively re-joining this
call through ensuring that even the most remotely located hotel can be accessed
online, therefore boosting its global presence and leveraging on online
marketing. Here is an info graphic indicating Kenyan online travel habits based
on bookings made on www.jovago.com

Across the country and the continent as
well, costs of hotels vary depending on the type of rooms and services that
accompany them. The survey carried through January to April reveals the most
expensive room booked within this period at $328,850 while the least expensive
went at $9 only!

Room Rates

Across the country and the continent as
well, costs of hotels vary depending on the type of rooms and services that
accompany them. The survey carried through January to April reveals the most
expensive room booked within this period at $328,850 while the least expensive
went at $9 only!

Preferred Payment Methods

The advent and globally-enviable growth of mobile
payments in Kenya is well illustrated in the payment trends of guests who book
accommodation via www.jovago.com. Data recorded shows that 60% of guests
prefer to wrap up the transaction via mobile or card payments, while the
remaining 40% opt to pay on arrival.

Length of Stay

The average guest will usually take two days/nights
in a hotel; this in most cases are either on business trips or a quick-fix long
weekend for most working middle class. We however notice that the trend greatly
changes with the purpose of travel. Vacations are generally longer, with the
longest stay going for 30 days.

Preferred Booking Durations

With
an emerging middle class popular for hitting
the ground running, it’s no mean task to have a 63% of our traveler’s
population booking consistently booking in advance of about seven days to check
in date. However, the spontaneous streak is still very live, with a notable 27%
placing bookings just hours to check in. A small but extremely cautious
fraction of guests (6%) do book more

Room Type Preference

Most guests prefer
booking into a double room, which will mostly accommodate couples. Solo
travelers on the other side will prefer single rooms-with most guests likely to
be on business trips. Most of the other rooms (4%) are favorable for family
stays as, upon requests may even have space for extra beds or cots. The biggest
room occupancy on www.jovago.com hotels is 8 people.

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About The Author

Collins Mbalo is a leading African Blogger and social Media Enthusiast .He is also the CEO and Founder of Digital Perspective (K) Ltd a Social Media Management, Marketing and Monitoring firm that helps its clients Grow ,Engage and influence its online presence.